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THE IMMIGRATION AND 
EARLY HISTORY 


OF THE 


PEOPLE OF ZEELAND 


OTTAWA COUNTY, MICHIGAN 
IN 1847 


By ANNA KREMER KEPPEL | 


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HERBERT G. KEPPEL 


THE LIBRARY 


OF THE 
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 


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ZHAIG =o # MnteREN MUNRO 


INTRODUCTION 


In writing this topic in regard to “The Immigration and 
Early History of the People of Zeeland in Ottawa County, 
Michigan, in 1847,” I fcund it necessary to study the history 
of the free church movement in The Netherlands in the 
early part of the nineteenth century and to trace the reli- 
gious conditions as far back as the influences of the French 
Revoluticn. 

For the first four chapters I was obliged to rely largely on 
secondary material, but I chose only such bcoks as were 
written from source material. In the fifth chapter I have 
based my writing almost exclusively on the Journal of Jan- 
nes Van de Luijster, the founder of Zeeland. This Journal 
and other valuable papers were loaned to me by my brother- 
in-law, the late Mr. Henry De Kruif, of Zeeland, a grandson 
of Jannes Van de Luijster. To his interest and aid, I feel 
deeply indebted. 

Mr. G. Van Schelven published in “(De Grondwet” at one 
time a series of historical articles on the Dutch settlement 
in Western Michigan. Some of this was original material, 
letters, extracts from diaries, and similar writings. All 
these articles, as well as church records, perscnal nctes of 
the late Govert Keppel, and many other pamphlets and 
books were made accessible to me by my late husband, Mr. 
Herbert G. Keppel, to whose memory I reverently dedicate 

_these papers. 

It was seventy-five years in July, 1922, since the first 
hcuse was built in Zeeland. To the best of my knowledge 
no one is now living of the party who made the journey with 
Jannes Van de Luijster. As we visit the old church, that 
stands on the half acre donated fcr that purpose by the 
founder of Zeeland, we miss the faces familiar in our child- 
hood days. When I close my eyes, I can recall old ladies in 
quaint black silk bcennets and carefully folded cashmere 

=o, * Shawls, who sedately exchanged “ruik-doosjes” and silver 
ss ; peppermint boxes. Yes, a third generation has taken the 
*: place of Anthony Van Bree, A. Van Hees, Jan and Jacob Den 
“2: Herder, cf Jan De Pree, and many others who have long 
» since gone tc their reward. 
ae It is because we cherish the memory of these heroes, 
*“whose faith and courage conquered the wilderness and 
~% = eaused it to blossom as the rose, and to commemorate the 
= .#work of the two fathers of Zeeland, Dominie C. Van der 
=. “* Meulen, its spiritual leader, and Jannes Van de Luijster, its 
: .= founder, that we have undertaken this task of writing a 
_ +» history of “The Immigration of the Zeelanders to Michigan.” 


< is ANNA KREMER KEPPEL 





CHAPTER I 


FRENCH INFLUENCES FROM 1789-1813 


Toward the close of the eighteenth century the old, old 
struggle between the previnces and the States-General was 
augmented by the friction between the party of reform who 
called themselves patriots and the partisans of the prince.! 
Actual civil war took place and a Prussian army was 
necessary in 1787 to restcre the stadtholder to his position 
of preponderance in the republic.2 The prince’s party also 
had the support of England, and the disorganized and dis- 
comfited patriots fled to France.? 


During the next few eventful years of the French Revo- 
lution, Dutch statesmen watched with the greatest anxiety 
the effect of those events upon the future of their country. 
The declaration cf the French Revolutionists “to free all 
Europe from the yoke of monarchs” meant Belgium first of 
all. The expatriated patriots meanwhile were busy at Paris 
urging an attack upon the Dutch republic, counting upon the 
support among the discontented elements in the country. 


In 1798 the national convention declared war against the 
king of England and the stadthclder of the republic. The 
invasion of Holland by French troops, the factions within 
the Republic itself, the final withdrawal of all aid by the 
allies, resulted in dissoluticn of the government. On the 
evening of January 18, 1795, William V. departed with his 
family to England and the old republic ceased to exist.® 


The period which now began is still naively referred to 
as “de Fransche Tijd” (French Age), and it is the influence 
cf this period upon society and the state of religion in the 
Netherlands which we wish to consider. The patriotic clubs 
took charge of the several “citizen bodies into communes, 
of town councils intc municipalities, of estates into assem- 
blies of provisional representatives.’® The liberty tree 
was erected in the squares and around it the excited popu- 
lace danced and sang. Perhaps the hungry French soldier 
benefited mest by the change, as quartered in the home 
of a citizen, he feasted upon good Dutch cooking.’ 


It is a dark picture that is drawn of conditions in the Ba- 
tavian Republic about 1800. The naval war, a consequence 


(1) Van Schelven, G., “Wat Bracht U Hier?’ in De Grondwet, Jaargang 48 to 
Jaargang 49. March 24, 1908, to September 22, 1908. 

(2) P. J. Blok, Geschiedenis van het Nederlandsche Volk; translated by O. A. 
Bierstadt, History of the People of the Netherlands (5 vols., New York, ete. 
1898-1912), V, 256. 

(3S) ibid., V; 254. 

(a) melbld.sa V2 tb. 

(5) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 290. 

CO) mel bid.sV0290;. 291. 

(7) Van Schelven, ‘“‘Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 


6 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


of the French alliance, brought the country to the verge of 
ruin. The moral decadence is thus stated by Blok: “Neglect 
of education 22.5).5. society spoiled by etiquette and extrava- 
gance; honesty, thrift, good faith regarded as antiquated 
ideas; art, literature and science languishing, religion and 
the church suffering from superstition, infidelity, and in- 
difference®. 


In 1804 Napoleon decided to put an end to the powerless 
state government which he had treated with contempt, and 
whose interests he had completely disregarded. From 1804- 
1806, the statesman, Schimmelpenninck, acted as president 
by the command cf the emperor. In vain he urged the idea 
of an American constitution, but the emperor declared, “I 
do not care to see this form cf government become con- 
tagious in Europe.’ 

In 1806 Prince Louis Bonaparte was given command of the 
French ncrthern army with headquarters at Nimwegen. 
Soon the emperor’s decision that the commonwealth might 
choose between annexation and transformation into a mon- 
archy under an imperial prince was brought to the Hague. 
Schimmelpenninck resigned his office “informing the French 
ambassador that without the ‘sanction of the people,’ he did 
nee feel at liberty to transfer the government to the new 
ruler.’’}° 


On June 22, Louis Napoleon arrived at The Hague, and 
became the weary nation’s first monarch. Unable to satisfy 
the demands of his inexorable brother, he abdicated in 13810, 
when by the decree of Rambouillet, Holland was declared 
reunited to the empire. This period from 1810-1813 marks 
the nadir of the nation’s deepest humiliation. After a visit 
to Holland, during which he had been everywhere received 
with almost servile respect and abject veneration, Napoleon 
wrcte, “I have been extremely pleased with Holland; the 
people have kept the memory of their independence only to 
feel the advantages of the reunion, and to find in it uni- 
formity of laws, a moderate system of taxation, and a regu- 
lar progress of affairs. They are more irench than any in- 
habitants of the re-united countries.” 


Napoleon’s view was more roseate than the facts war- 
ranted. Conscription, excessive taxation, the cessation of 
commerce, all caused the discontent to increase. Even the 
Dutch language seemed to be gradually giving way to 
French. It was a population, weary of the yoke that 


(8) Blok, History of the Peolpe of the Netherlands, V, 325. 

(9) Ibid., V, 347. 

(10) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 353, 355. 
CLs bidesVere los 

(12) ibid,: V, 81 t. 

(13)° Tbid -V, 378. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 7 


saw the downfall of the Russian campaign and heard the 
news of the battle of Leipzig. 


This was the moment for which the Prince of Orange had 
been waiting. Taking advantage of a revolution in Holland, 
he came from England arriving at Scheveningen on the 
afternoon of November 30, 1813, to bezin the work of lib- 
eration.14 The Peace of Paris, May 30, 1814, stipulated 
that Holland be placed under the sovereignty of the House 
of Orange and receive an increase in territory. At the 
desire of England, the Congress of Vienna decided to annex 
Belgium to the territory of the old republic. The establish- 
ment of the kingdom of the Netherlands was consummated 
August 24, 1815, and William I, the new king, realized the 
goal of his ambition. 


(14) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 385. 
(15) Ibid, V, 390, 398. 





CHAPTER II 


REORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH BY WILLIAM I 


In the Netherlands the political and the religious are not 
easily disasscciated. In the seventeenih century the free 
state had developed out of the free church.1 From the 
Arminian controversy down to the schocl question of Prem- 
ier _Kuyper in our own day, questions oi pclitics and ques- 
tions of religion have been inextriably linked. In the Hol- 
lander, theolcgical interest is exceedingly keen, and opinion 
on the subject is much divided.22 Nowhere except, per- 
haps, in Scotland is conviction so strong on peints, which to 
an American seem either trivial, or baffle us by the very 
fineness of their distinctions. In order to understand the 
causes for the secession of 1834, it is necessary to keep in 
mind this national characteristic. 

The church, as organized by the Synod cf Dordt 1618- 
1619, was democratic from its lowest representative body 
to its highest. It had never been a state church in the sense 
that it was controlled by the government.? During the 
twenty years from 1795-1815, when no less than six separ- 
ate constitutions were successively in force, the organization 
cf the church had been attacked, though the doctrine and 
liturgy were untouched. The tendency during this period 
was to bring the church more closely under the control of 
the central government.4 After the annexation, minis- 
ters’ salaries were either not paid at all or only partially, so 
that many a pastor suffered actual want.® 

The word which we often find describing the spiritual 
condition of the church of this time is indifference. The 
submissive attitude of the church during the Napoleonic 
era was doubtless due to a loss of that positive ccnviction 
which had sustained it in the struggle with Spain, and is 
perhaps accounted for by its permeation with the rational- 
istic spirit of the eighteenth century. 

When William I became king in 1813, he immediately saw 
to it that the salaries of the ministers be paid in full and 
provided restitution of amounts in arears.6 When the 
clergy were properly grateful and in a happy frame of con- 
tentment, he preceeded to reorganize the old church, naving 
in mind perhaps the Anglican church as a pattern, wilh the 


(1) W. Van Oosterwijk Bruyn, Uit De Dagen Van Het Reveil (Rotterdam, 1900), 

(2) James H. Mackay, Religious Thought in Holland During the Nineteenth Cen- 
tury (London, etc., 1911), 2. 

(8) Henry E. Dosker, ‘Pilgrim Fathers in the West,’’ in De Grondwet, Sept. 26, 1911. 

(4) Van Schelven, G., “Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

ce s Rullmann, Een Nagel In De Heilige Plaats (Amsterdam, 1912), 44. 

6 lds Vendo: 


10 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 





sovereign as its practical head. Instead of calling a national 
synod, as Prince Maurits had done, he entrusted the draw- 
ing up of a new constitution to a secretly appointed com- 
mission. In this new constitution of 1816, the historic rep- 
resentative bodies though retaining their old names were re- 
placed by appropriate boards under government control.’ 


Out of an article in this constitution in regard to the 
admission of candidates to the ministry developed the fam- 
ous “‘quia”’ or ‘‘quatenus” discussion. In the old formula, 
the candidate subscribed to the following: ‘‘that all the arti- 
cles and doctrines in the confession and catechism of the 
Reformed churches cf the Netherlands........... in all particulars 
are in accordance with God’s word.” The new formula read, 
“that we accept and heartily believe the doctrine which, in 
accordance with God’s word are ccntained in the accepted 
rules of unity of the Dutch Reformed church.’ By its 
ambiguity this article lowered the bars for admission to the 
ministry and was a source of much discontent to the ortho- 
dex party. With the exception of a few voices of protest, as 
for example that of the classis of Amsterdam in 1816, the 
church apparently acquiesced in the new order of things.?® 


(7) Dosker, Pilgrim Fathers of the West. 
i} “tie ede Pamphlet De Afscheiding (Orange City, Iowa, 1896), 10. 
( id., 25. 


CHAPTER III 
THE REVEIL AND THE SECESSION OF 1834 


In the early decades of the nineteenth century two relig- 
ious movements arose in Holland, which each in its own 
way had a great influence on the course of religious thought 
and political action. The one born of foreign influence is 
still always spoken of as “Het Reveil,’” while the other, 
which led to the free church movement, had as its basic 
principle the maintenance of the old strict reformed doc- 
trine.! 

The Reveil, or revival, had its origin in Calvin’s old strong- 
hold, the city of Geneva.2 Its earliest fires were kindled 
by a young Methodist, Wilcox, of the school of Whitefield, 
and by a Scotchman, Robert Haldane, whose lectures on the 
Epistle to the Romans were attended by Merle d’Aubigne, 
later prominent in the French revival and a friend of Groen 
van Prinsteren. But it was the life and influence of Cesar 
Malan that most influenced the revival spirit in Holland. 

The great poet, Bilderdijk, is always spoken of as the 
father of the Dutch Reveil.4 In 1817, as a private 
teacher in the University cf Leyden he taught the history 
of his country in an entirely new way and drew about him- 
self a little coterie of disciples. Among them were the con- 
verted Jew, Isaac Da Costa, himself a famous pcet, his friend 
Capadose, Groen van Prinsteren, jurist, historian and states- 
man, Willem and Dirk van Hoogendorp, and Jacob van Len- 
nep, the Walter Scctt of the Netherlands. In 1823 the 
ardent Da Costa wrote a pamphlet called ““Bezwaren Tegen 
den Geest der Eeuw” (Grievances against the Spirit of the 
Age), as a testimony against the formalism and the ration- 
alistic spirit of the church of his day.® 

Groen van Prinsteren, the founder of the anti-revolution- 
ary party had as one of his political tenets the question of 
Christian education in the schools, a questicn which till its 
final adjustment in the ministry of Premier Kuyper by an 
alliance of the anti-revolutionary party with the Roman 
Catholics was cne of the most disturbing factors in Dutch 
politics. 

“The great result of the Reveil was a revival of Calvinism 
that was deeply rooted in the minds of the people.’® In 
this strongly Calvinistic bent, it was truly a nationalistic 


(1) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 443. 
(2) Rullmann, Een Nagel in de Heilige Plaats, 1. 

(eyeeloid., 20, 21: 

(4) Mackay, Religious Thought in Holland, 25. 

(5) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 409-410. 
(6) Mackay, Religious Thought in Holland, 47. 


12 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


movement, and in that respect it was akin to the second 
movement of which we shall now speak, ““De Afscheiding”’ 
or secession. 


In 1829, Hendrick Peter Schelte entered the department 
of theology in the University of Leyden, and was joined a 
little later by his friend, Brummelkamp. About these two 
men a small coterie of kindred spirits grew up among whom 
were G. F. Gezelle Meerburg, Van Velzen and A. C. Van 
Raalte. These young pietists were soon contemptuously 
spoken of as Da-Ccestianen. They frequented the conventi- 
cles of the pious old professor De Fevre, where they read 
and discussed the writings of the leaders of the Reveil.’ 

Theugh they had been objects of dislike to their profes- 
sors and fellow students, they found upon their graduation 
congregations who gladly welcomed their preaching. In 
ccuntry communities scattered over the whole land, there 
were simple, pious folk deeply attached to the old doctrine, 
and bitterly opposed to the innovaticns of the constitution 
of the year 1816.8 Right here, perhaps, we may mention the 
question of the ‘use of hymns instead cf Psalms in the 
churches, which indirectly, at least, influenced the free 
church movement. 

Till 1807 only the stately Psalms were sung in the Dutch 
Reformed churches, but at that time a collection of hymns 
was adcpted, and it was the custom at public worship to 
sing two hymns and one Psalm. But in many districts, 
especially in Frisia and Zeeland where Dutch obstinacy is 
proverbial, the male members would show their disapproval 
of the use of the hymnal by putting cn their hats, or by 
even leaving the church at the first line of the detested song. 
Later on, during the secession, a police officer attended ser- 
vices in suspected congregations, and people who showed 
such disrespect were arrested. 

Among these conservative congregations was that of 
Doveren en Genderen in Noord Brabant of which Scholte 
became the pastor. In the North, in Grcningen, was a simi- 
lar church, Ulrum, where Hendrick De Cock was preaching 
with such eloquence that people came from all the neighbor- 
ing province of Frisia, sc that the little church couid not 
accommodate the throngs.!° 

De Cock was soon cordially disliked by his cclleagues. 
Some were jealous of his popularity, others resented the 
fact that he baptized children of their own members, who 
entertained conscientious scruples as to their own pastor’s 


(7) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 14, 15. 

(8) Rullmann, Een Nagel in de Heilige Plaats, 95. 
(9) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 16, 17. 

(10) Ibid., 18. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 13 


orthodoxy. This was distinctly against church rules. He 
also wrcte some rather violent pamphlets and brochures, in 
which the spirit of tolerance seems conspicuous by its ab- 
sence. De Cock was first suspended, then with his session 
and most of his congregation he signed a resolution of 
secession from the state church and his dismissal followed, 
May 29, 1834.11 


During the suspension of De Cock, Schclte paid him a 
visit of sympathy and was invited by the session of Ulrum 
to preach on a Friday evening, which he did. Having been 
forbidden the use of the church on Sunday, he spoke in the 
afternoon in an open field, to a large congregation. Upon 
his return to Doveren, he, too, was suspended for preaching 
and baptizing at Ulrum without permission of the consti- 
tuted authorities. Thereupon on November 1, 1834, he ana 
his congregation with the exception of four men and two 
women signed the articles of secession. Since this document 
clearly states the position of the secessionists, I will quote 
its contents. ‘We, the undersigned, members of the Re- 
formed Church of Doveren, Genderen, and Gansoyen, hav- 
ing learned that the board of control of the classis of Heus- 
den has suspended our pastor because he preached, bap- 
tized and addressed an open air meeting in the congregation 
of Ulrum; since all these activities are fcunded on the word 
of God, the church can see nothing in this act of the board 
of classical control except the placing of human ordinances 
above those of God’s word; just as was done in the days of 
the reformation by the papist ecclesiastical hierarchy; in 
the days of Jesus and the apostles by the Pharisees and the 
Scribes, and in the days of the Old Testament by the oppon- 
ents of the true worship. Therefore we hereby declare that 
we no longer wish to live under such control, nor remain in 
church fellowship with those who do submit; but holding 
fast to God’s werd and the formulas of unity which con- 
form to that in every particular, we separate ourselves from 
them as a reformed church. In our public worship we shall 
follow the old church liturgy, and our elders called by God 
will for the present conform to the constitution of the Synod 
of Dortrecht held in the years 1618 and 1619.2 A copy 
of this was sent to the king together with a statement 
of their position. 


The example of Ulrum and Deveren was soon followed by 
other churches in various parts of the country and the first 


(11) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 21. 

(12) Translated from Kompleete Uitgave van de Officieele Stukken Betreffende den 
Uitgang uit het Nederl. Hervormd Kerkgenootschap van de Leeraren H. P. 
Scholte, A. Brummelkamp, S. Van Velzen, G. F. G zelle Meerburg en Dr. 
A. C. Van Raalte (in two volumes, Kampen, 1863), I, 14, 15. 


14 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


Synod of seceded churches met in secret in a private home 
in Amsterdam in 1836. It had at that time no representa- 
tives from the province of Zeeland, because there was no 
organized secession in Zeeland until later in that year.!® 


We have called this chapter ‘‘Reveil en Afscheiding,” but 
the leaders of the earlier movement did not wholly approve 
and certainly did not join the separatists. Da Costa and 
others took the view that although the Reformed church of 
the Netherlands had deviated in many particulars from her 
early doctrine and discipline, that still this did not consti- 
tute her “‘the false church,” and that thus there was no war- 
rant for leaving her communion to found a new cone. They 
recognized the injustice of the persecution which their for- 
mer friends had to suffer, and Groen van Prinsteren even 
appeared as the champion of the Separatists in the admin- 
istration, but they did not consider a return to the principles 
of the Synod of Dort as the only remedy for existing condi- 
tions. On the other hand the seceders were deeply grieved 
by the aloofness of those from whom they expected not only 
sympathy but cooperation. It was impossible for them to 
understand how the men of the Reveil could remain in 
a church which instigated persecution, and by remaining 
acquiesce in its attitude.4 


(18) Nollen, De Af'scheiding, 26. 
(14) Bruyn, Het Reveil, 358-360. 


CHAPTER IV 
PERSECUTION 


It is difficult to imagine that in the Netherlands, to which 
John Robinson and his Scrooby congregation fled in the 
seventeenth century, scenes of actual persecution for con- 
science sake could take place in the nineteenth century. In 
the constitution of 1815, when Willem I ascended the throne, 
religious toleration to all was expressly decreed. Then why 
deny its benefits to these seceders? 

Precisely because they were seceders from the State 
church and assumed themselves to be ‘“‘the true church,” 
they aroused synodical opposition, and were at first refused 
recognition as other religicus bodies by the government. 
Father William, as the king was often called, was “‘indefa- 
tigable, sincere and honest, but his great fault was arbi- 
trariness and stubborn adherence to his own opinions, which 
made him consider all opposition as disobedience cor lack of 
judgment.”’ That conditions in general in the Netherlands 
were far better than in countries under the surveillance of 
the Holy Alliance is proved by the fact that Metternich re- 
garded the king as a defender of liberal, monarchical prin- 
ciples and his kingdom as a dangerous example to other 
nations.! 

Having no church buildings of their cwn, these people 
met in open fields, in barns, or in some private home. These 
conventicles, conducted as they often were by men whe had 
little schooling, and who contradicted the preaching of the 
regular clergy, aroused the cpposition of the church authori- 
ties, who, in turn, had the backing of the government.? 
Church formalism can never understand a revival or pietist 
movement. No doubt, tco, being true individualistic Dutch- 
men, these separatists were perhaps at times somewhat 
exasperating in their defiance of constituted authority. 

However the stubborn fact remains that there was bcth 
official and popular persecution of the movement for a num- 
ber of years, and it was a long time before they ceased to 
be despised and contemptuously treated. In 1835, under the 
presidency of Donker Curtius, the General Synod recom- 
mended the enforcement of certain articles in the Cede of 
Napoleon to suppress the meetings of secessionists.2 By 
this law not more than twenty persons might meet for 
religious, literary or political reasons without a license and 
compliance in every particular with certain stipulated con- 


(1) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 404. 
(2) Ibid, V, 444. 
(3) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 33. 


16 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


diticns. The constitutionality of this law as applied to their 
religious meetings was tested in the courts and the decisions 
were diverse, so that in general persecution depended on the 
attitude of the local authorities. July 5, 1836, a royal decree 
authorized the organization of local associations for relig- 
ious worship under very difficult provisions. Compliance 
did not mean recognition as a denomination. It only saved 
individual congregations from further official persecution, 
and those who applied for recognition under this decree 
found it difficult to obtain even when willing te comply with 
the conditions. In 1839, the congregation of Utrecht under 
Ds. H. P. Scholte was the first to receive the official sanction 
for its existence.4 


Scholte’s action did not meet with unqualified approval 
among the brethren. Many refused to request authoriza- 
tion for their associations and called themselves “‘churches 
under the cross.” It is not the purpose of this paper to dis- 
cuss the differences which caused factions among the seces- 
sionists from 1836 cn. That such would be the case is nat- 
ural when one considers the tendency among the Dutch to 
independent thinking and action, the different characteris- 
tics of people from the various provinces, and the fact that 
many of them were uneducated and narrow minded even 
though sincere. 


September 12, 1840, William I yielded to pressure and 
abdicated in favor of his son, William II. As Blok says, “the 
old king was too much a man of the eighteenth century to 
feel at home amid all the new things.’> His son, William 
II, by mecdification of the conditions of the decree of 1836, 
brought practical toleration and added many to the number 
of officially recognized congregations. But as before, others 
were still convinced that certain conditions were unjust, and 
remained independent. Van Schelven mentions instances 
of official persecution as late as July 8, 1846.6 


This official persecution was of various kinds. Some- 
times detachments of soldiers were quartered in the homes 
of separatists. In Ulrum, in 1834, one hundred and fifty 
soldiers were thus lodged. Open air meetings were often 
dispersed by charges of cavalry. At Almkerk and Emmik- 
hoven the soldiers used their sabres and wounded a num- 
ber.2 Fines were constantly imposed and the few who 
had means found it a heavy drain upon their resources. Nol- 


4) Van Schelven, ‘‘Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

(5) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, 447. 

(6) Van Schelven, ‘‘Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

(7) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 35. 

(8) Dosker, Henry E., Levensschets van Rev. A. C. Van Raalte (Nykerk, 1893, 45. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND A tf 


len says that Scholte had paid between seven and eight 
thousand florins in fines and costs. 

Jannes Van de Luijster, elder of the seceded church of 
Borsele, in the province of Zeeland, and later founder of the 
village cf Zeeland in Michigan, has left a very naive account 
of a typical conventicle held in his barn, June 21, 1840, and 
its resultant judicial process. The story loses much of its 
quaint simplicity in the translation. 

“June 21, 1840, Dominie C. Van der Meulen, minister at 
Middelharnis, preached in my barn on Sunday. The weather 
was fine and about one thousand people were present and 
all was quiet and edifying. Even so many strange horses 
were in the pasture together in great peaceableness. The 
Lord hath given witness of the word of truth to many con- 
sciences and especially to His children.” 

However, Dirk Wisse, burgomaster of Borsele signed a 
judicial warrant. 

“July 20, with my brother, deacon Jan Steketee, appeared 
before the court at Goes. Fined for the minister, myself 
and Jan Steketee, each, one hundred florins.’° Of this 
amount the book shows that Van de Luijster paid one hun- 
dred and sixteen florins. 

Once when Ds. Van der Meulen was preaching to one of 
his congregaticns in Zeeland from an improvised pulpit in 
a wagon box on a threshing floor, two soldiers made their 
way through the large audience to the minister and said, 
“In the name of the king we forbid you to preach to this 
audience, and command you to leave this place.” The fear- 
less answer they received was, “You have brought your mes- 
sage in the name of the king, but I tell you in the name of 
the King of kings that I am commissioned to preach the 
gospel this day to the people here assembled.” 

These are just a few examples of official persecution. For 
years after religious toleration had been granted by the 
government, popular persecution continued unabated. Boy- 
cotting their business, throwing stones, discharging em- 
ployes who belonged to the despised sect, calling vile names 
were common methcds by which life was made difficult for 
separatists in their own land. But faith so tested not only 
endured but waxed strong, and the flourishing free church 
of Holland today is testimony to that fact. 


(9) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 35. 

(10) A translation made from a private journal kept by Jannes v d Luyster. 

(11) Translation from an address ‘‘Cornelius van der Meulen’”’ delivered by Jacob 
Van der Meulen, D. D., and reprinted in De Grondwet, (Sept., 1911). 





CHAPTER V 


THE FREE CHURCH MOVEMENT IN ZEELAND 


We have endeavored thus far to trace the general devel- 
opment of the Separatist movement in the Netherlands. 
Since we are most concerned with the development of the 
free church in the province of Zeelaid and its relation to the 
subsequent emigration from that district, we will endeavor 
to trace its histcery from the somewhat meagre sources of 
information at our disposal. 

The first congregation in Zeeland seems to have been that 
of Ds. Budding at Biggekerke cn the island of Walcheren, 
who seceded with his congregation April 1, 1836.1 He 
was very eccentric, radical, and narrow-minded, forming a 
great contrast to the genial, sane leader of the emigraticn, 
Ds. Van der Meulen. Ds. Budding was imprisoned at Mid- 
delburg at least four times in the days of persecution, once 
for a pericd of six months. Before 1839 he seems to have 
visited the newly formed congregations, preaching, making 
pastoral calls and baptizing the children. He seems to have 
been out of harmony with the desire of Van de Luijster 
and Steketee? and others who wished official recognition 
from the government. He also wished to see the paraphrase 
of the Psalms, known as the paraphrase of Datheen, which 
had been discarded in 1773 for the beautiful one still in use 
today, restored. On these disputed points he lest touch with 
the more sane and liberal element. Fle came to America but 
had no wide-spread influence or leadership. Many amusing 
stories are still told cf his eccentricities and his language 
more forceful than elegant. 

Just when the congregation at Borsele was founded we 
have net been able to discover, but the journal of Jannes 
Van de Luijster, who has been mentioned in a previous 
chapter, begins October 27, 1837, ad mentions a classis 
consisting of Borsele, Nieuwderp, s’Heerenhoek, and Hein- 
kenszand. These are four quaint little villages in the south- 
eastern corner of the island of Zuid Beveland. June 22, 
1838, a classis was held at Gcoes and five other churches are 
mentioned as sending delegates. Again in 1840, representa- 
tives from the other side of the Scheldt, from Ter Neuzen 
and Axel are also present. From this time on we find the 
names cf Oggel and De Pree frequently mentioned. 

One of the most important figures in the free church 
movement in the province of Zeeland was undoubtedly. the 


(1) Verhagen, J., De Geschiedenis der Christelijke Gereformeerde Kerk in Neder- 
land (Kampen, 1886), 357. 

(2) Steketee, a deacon and influential member of church at Borsele. Founder of 
Steketee dry goods business in Grand Rapids, Mich. 


20 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


faithful elder, Jannes Van de Luijster, who owned a large 
and fertile farm near Borsele. The simple, unvarnished 
account of his activities, as told in his journal, indicate an 
unselfish, singularly devout nature, of that mystic type 
which without the saving grace cf common sense so easily 
becomes fanatical. Fortunately Van de Luijster had very 
good judgment, and though narrow in his own conceptions 
of truth was more critical of himself than of others. His 
time, his home, his whole substance seems to have been con- 
secrated to the cause. 


In the province of Zeeland one finds a Latin strain in the 
population, traceable to Hugenot refugees, or perhaps to 
French and Spanish soldiers. The Zeelander is quicker of 
perception, more imaginative than his brothers from other 
provinces. Owing to the insular character of his surround- 
ings, his constant struggle with the sea he is also intensely 
tenacious of his convictions, provincial in his outlook and 
individualistic in his attitude. 

The gift of understanding the people with whom he was 
dealing belonged in abundant measure to Ds. Cornelius Van 
der Meulen, who was known as the “apostle of Zeeland.” 
He was one of the pioneer ministers of the free church. 
After a year of study with Ds. Scholte at Utrecht he was 
ordained to preach, and accepted a call to minister to the 
twelve congregations of Zeeland, making the city of Goes, 
the capital of Zuid Beveland, his headquarters. He began 
his work in March, 1841, and emigrated with some of his 
people in 1847. Of his life and activities a fuller account 
will be given in later chapters. 

The church at Borsele began to request permission to 
have their congregation recognized as early as 1839 and 
their requests were renewed from time to time without 
bringing the desired reply. Mr. Steketee was even sent as 
a delegate to the king, but returned without having had an 
audience. Finally in July, 1841, recognition was obtained 
and permission granted to hold services in Van de Luijster’s 
barn, where they had been so long held in defiance of the 
authorities. The growing strength of the church in Zeeland 
is indicated by the acquisition of various church buildings 
between 1841 and 1847.3 


(3) This chapter is based on a study of the Journal of Jannes van de Luijster, , 
ee by the late Mr. Henry De Kruif of Zeeland, a grandson of Van de 
uijster. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE COLONIZATION MOVEMENT 


The motives which led to the colonization projects among 
the Seceders have been much discussed. Earlier papers laid 
stress upon the religious motive. At present the tendency 
is toward an emphasis upon the economic conditions. Un- 
doubtedly there were several factors which determined the 
emigration, but a careful study of the situation and of the 
character of the men, who led the movement, wceuld lead 
one to believe that the desire for freedom to work cut their 
peculiar religious and educational ideas unhampered was at 
least the primary consideraticn. Blok writes in speaking of 
the Separatists, “Several others......souzht some years later 
in North America under lead of Van Raalte the liberty of 
worship which they believed could never be obtained here.’”! 
Professor D’Ooge in a fairly recent article on this sub- 
ject says, “The impulse, that brought the Dutch pioneers to 
the State cf Michigan in 1847, was essentially the love of 
religious freedom.’”? 


Whether this movement was a part of the general north- 
ern European emigration of that period is nct so easy to 
determine, but the chances are that it was not. Dr. Dosker 
seems to think that the epidemic of emigration, which in- 
fected Europe in this decade, had reached Holland by way 
of Germany.? Mr. G. Van Schelven holds the view that it 
had nothing in common with the exodus from Germany and 
Ireland, and northern Europe in general. That it was 
almost entirely confined to the Separatists is the conclusion 
to which a comparison of such statistics as are available 
would lead one. The figures of immigration from the Neth- 
erlands for the years from 1846-1849 are as follows: 1846, 
979; 1847, 2631; 1848, 918; 1849, 1190 or a total of 5718 
for the four years. Statistics of Michigan assign to Hol- 
land and Zeeland a population of 1829 in 1850.6 The original 
band of Scholte’s enterprise numbered about 900.’ 

We have no records of the Hollanders, coming in those 
years to Wisconsin, Grand Rapids or cities of the east, 
but we know that their number were considerab!e, and that 


(1) Blok, History of the People of the Netherlands, V, 445. 

(2) D’Ooge, Martin L., ‘‘The Dutch Pioneers of Michigan,’ Michigan Pioneer and 
Historical Collections (Lansing, 1912), 205. 

(3) Dosker, Van Raalte, 57. 

(4) Mr. Van Schelven, historiographer of the Dutch colony in Holland, stated this 
view to the writer in a conversation, August, 1916. 

(5) Bromwell, William J., History of Immigration to the United States (New York, 
1856), 132-144. 

(6) Statistics of the State of Michigan compiled from the census of 1850 (lLan- 
sing, 51), 122. 

(7) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 43. 


22 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


for the most part, they were affiliated with the Seceders. It 
is surely safe to say, then, that at least seven eights of the 
immigration of those years was a resuit of prepaganda on 
the part of certain Separatist leaders in the Netherlands. 

The political conditions, which led to the excdus from Ger- 
many to which we owe Carl Schurz ana many like him, were 
practically non-existent in Holland. William II was by char- 
acter and because of constitutional checks out of line with 
the policies of the Holy Alliance. On the other hand, the 
extreme poverty which drove the ‘rish to seek a home in 
the United States has always been unknown to the Dutch. 
Just how bad economic conditions were in the forties is hard 
to judge, as the material for a comprehensive view is not 
available. Blok does not especially emphasize industrial 
conditions in this decade. It was undoubtedly true that the 
war with Belgium had had a bad effect upon industry and 
commerce and had necessitated heavy taxation. The potato 
blight affected Holland considerably, since it was the staple 
article of diet among the peasants. Quotations from articles 
written by Scholte, Van Raalte and Brummelkamp about 
1845 or 1846 show that the unemployment was great espec- 
ially among farm laborers, that pauperism was on the in- 
crease, prices were high, and that a feeling of anxiety for 
the future was quite general in view of conditions.’ 


As far as the Separatists were concerned the situation 
in those years was not especially hopeful. They were not 
yet accorded recognition as a denominaticn, and official per- 
secution had not wholly ceased. They were despised and 
discriminated against as individuals. The school question 
too, loomed large as a factor jn the emigration movement.? 


Three names stand cut prominently as propagandists for 
colonization, Ds. H. P. Scholte, and Van Raalte and Brum- 
melkamp. The last two were brothers-in-law, and devoted 
to each other by a bond like that of David and Jonathan. 
These men wrote and lectured and organized societies for 
the furtherance of their ideas. 

The two regions seriously considered as possible locations 
were the United States or America, as they called it, and 
the island of Java. Java appealed to them for several 
reasons. In the first place by going there they could retain 
their citizenship, and remain Netherlanders. More was 
known in Holland about Java at that time than about the 
United States. Van Raalte in particular had a very high 
idea of the climatic and agricultural advantages of the pearl 
of the East Indies. The thought of using the colony as a 


(8) Van Schelven, “Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 
(9) Ibid. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 23 


nucleus for missionary effort among the heathen also was 
an attractive one. However all attempts to secure a promise 
of religious freedom or of any financial aid from the govern- 
ment failed, and the die was cast in favor of America.!? 
A full discussion of the reasons for this decision was given 
in a pamphlet which appeared in the spring of 1846, and was 
signed by Van Raalte and Brummelkamp.!! 


Certain enterprising individuals who had gone to the 
United States wrote letters to relatives and friends, which 
were printed and found a wide circulation among the breth- 
ren. Among these writers were A. Hollerdijk, who wrote 
from Milwaukee in 1845, H. Barendregt from St. Louis, Derk 
and Louise Arnand from Boston, 1846, and R. Sleister from 
Waupun, Wisconsin. In giving his impressions of conditions 
in what was then the territory of Wisconsin, one of these 
letter writers says, ‘I have never seen rye bread in Amer- 
ica, but pork and meat three times a day. This territory 
is called Wisconsin, and is about two thousand and sixty-five 
hours from Rotterdam. All religions are free, but there are 
many religions. The schools are free, and we need not fear 
wild animals. Women don’t need to do anything but milk 
and get the meals, so they are well off. There are many 
pious people in this country, especially among the Metho- 
dists. Women dress here just as they do in Arnhem,! 
except for the jackets and caps.”’}8 

Meetings in the interests of colonization were held in var- 
ious cities in the Netherlands. In August, 1846, at Utrecht 
it was found that seventy quite well-to-do families, mostly 
from the province of Zuid Holland were ready to go as a 
body and to take with them some of the poorer brethren. 
That was the nucleus of the company which went with Ds. 
Scholte.!4 

During the summer of 1846, Van Raalte was critically ill 
with typhoid, and it was on this sickbed that he resolved to 
go with the people as a leader. Both he and Scholte; 
though working independently of each other, had decided 
most emphatically in favor of colonization, not individual 
emigration. Years later at a General Synod at Hudson, New 
York, Van Raalte declared that “Americanization by assimi- 
lation, not by absorption,”!* was his idea of what was best 
for the Hollanders. This idea has shaped all the history of 


(10) VanSchelven, ‘“Wat Braacht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

(11) Brummelkamp en Van Raalte, ‘“‘Waarom bevorderen wij de Volksverhuizing en 
wel naar Noord Amerika en niet naar Java?’’ This is printed in full in Van 
Schelven’s ““Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

) Arnhem, a small city in Gelderland near the German border. 
) Van Schelven, “Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 
(14) Ibid. 
) Dosker, Van Raalte, 65. 
) Van der Meulen, ‘‘Cornelius van der Meulen,’’ De Grondwet, August 8, 1911. 


24 - EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


the Dutch settlements in the west, although opinions as to 
its wisdom have been diverse. 


In casting about for some anchorage in America, Van 
Raalte and Brummelkamp wrote a letter in the Dutch lan- 
guage addressed ‘To Those of the Faith in the United States 
of America.” This they entrusted to a young man, Roelof 
Sleister, who was setting out in the summer of 1846. It 
fell into the hands of Dr. J. N. Wyckhoff, a pastor of one 
of the Dutch Reformed churches in Albany.47 He was one 
of the few who could still read the Dutch language and 
he placed a translation of this letter in the Christian Intelli- 
gencer!® of October 15, 1846, thus paving the way for Dr. 
A. Van Raalte’s kindly reception by the Dutch Reformed 
church in the East. Scholte had likewise written to Dr. 
Thomas De Witt, who, as a delegate of the General Synod, 
had visited The Netherlands in 1846, and had received a 
favorable reply.!9 


Van Raalte sailed from Rotterdam in Septembbr, 1846, 
landing in New York in November. Scholte’s company, 
about eight or nine hundred strong sailed in the spring of 
1847, arriving at Baltimore. Sholte, himself, had taken 
passage in the steamship “Sara Sand,’ which made the 
journey from Liverpool to Boston in thirteen days. After 
much investigation, he decided on Iowa as the final destina- 
tion. Van Raalte had by that time made Michigan his 
choice.?° 


These men were the two pathfinders, and later settlers 
either went to Scholte or Van Raalte. Both were University 
graduates, accustomed to a refined and comfortable manner 
of living. To deliberately choose to leave all the old associ- 
ations, to endure uncomplainingly with their families the 
hardships of the long tedious journey and the harder years 
of pioneer struggle, indicates a strength of purpose and 
devotion that will continue to win our admiration. To act 
as personal conductors at that time, for several hundred 
people, unacquainted with the language or conditions, and 
encumbered with a most miscellaneous assortment of bag- 
gage from feather beds to frying pans was a task which 
eyed the modern tourist agency might have found Her- 
culean. 


(17) Dosker, Van Raalte, 64. 

(18) The Christian Intelligencer, then as today, the denominational paper of The 
Dutch Reformed Church. 

(19) Van Schelven, “Wat Bracht U Hier?” De Grondwet, 1908. 

(20) Nollen, De Afscheiding, 43. 


\ CHAPTER VII 
COLONIZATION IN ZEELAND 


Three men took the leadership in the matter of emigra- 
tion from Zeeland. They were Jan Steketee and Jannes Van 
de Luijster of the village of Borsele and the pastor of the 
churches in Zeeland, Ds. C. Van der Meulen. The first per- 
son in the province to think favorably of the colonization 
schemes is said to have been Jan Steketee, who felt the 
pressure of industrial conditions and saw a future for his 
family in America.! 


Ds. Van der Meulen was not in favor of emigration at first. 
He even opposed it, and said, “‘Let us pray the Lord to keep 
His children from leaving the land of their nativity and 
seeking foreign shores with motives of worldly aspirations.’”2 
Later on, by arguments possibly of Steketee and Van de 
Luijster, he changed his mind as to the advisability of this 
plan. As to his motives, he expressed himself very clearly 
and emphatically as was his wont, and no one who knows 
his reputation can find it possible to doubt his sincerity. In 
January, 1849, he wrote to Ds. De Moen in The Netherlands, 
as follows: “My reason for leaving The Netherlands was not 
to become great and rich in America, but because I saw that 
church and state were nearing destruction, and God in His 
providence opened a way of escape.’ 


Elder Van de Luijster has left an account of how he came 
to make his own momentous decision, in which mystic piety 
played a great part. Here we find the view just stated 
reiterated, namely, that America offered a way of escape for 
God’s people from the judgments of the Almighty. It is 
clear that he had been carefully following the ccurse of the 
movement since its earliest inception, and the decision he 
finally arrived at was not hastily conceived. He was a quiet 
man, living much within himself, and wrestling as Jacob of 
old, in deep soul struggles. The battle was finally won Jan- 
uary 1, 1847, and he describes his frame of mind that day 
in a phrase we find it difficult to express by an English 
equivalent. He says, “Ik ben van alles losgemaakt.” It 
means he felt free from the restraints of material things, 
willing to break the tender ties which bound him to his 


(1) Van der Meulen, John, ‘‘Spirit of the Early Leaders’’ address printed in De 
Grondwet, (January, 1917). 

(2) Broek, Dirk, “De Leiders der Landverhuizing,’’ an address delivered in Zeeland, 
Michigan, Sept. 19, 1888, and reprinted in De Grondwet (July, 1912). 

(8) Translated from a letter dated January 20, 1849, and printed in De Grondwet, 
(October, 1914). ; 


26 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


native land, to the broad acres and friend!g homestead, life- 
long relationships and friendships.4 


These men were not dreamers who could not translate 
their vision into action. In the first months of the year, 
1847, three meetings were held at Goes to plan for coloniza- 
tion. As at Utrecht, an association was formed, but they 
took the unique step of organizing themselves into a con- 
gregation. They chose Jannes Van de Luijster and Johannes 
Hoogesteger as elders, and Jan Steketee and A. Glerum as 
deacons. They called as their pastor, Ds. C. Van der Meulen, 
who accepted the burdens of leadership laid upon him.® 


Meanwhile Jannes Van de Luijster had sold his farm for 
sixty thousand florins, about twenty-five thousand dollars. 
This amount he took with him in gold in a stout wooden 
chest which was zealously guarded on the long journey. 


Out of the congregation at Borsele, seventy-seven persons 
probably many of them employed on his farm, and whose 
means of subsistence would be threatened by his departure, 
were taken along at Van de Luijster’s personal expense.® 
His account book shows expenditures which indicate that 
clothing and a necessary outfit for the journey was not 
infrequently included.’ 


Finally four hundred and fifty-seven persons were ready 
to go.8 It is never easy for a Hollander to leave his native 
land, nor even the village or house where he was born. 
Permanency is a characteristic of the Hollander. His nat- 
ural conservatism makes change and adjustment to new 
conditions difficult. At that time a journey to America was 
looked upon in the light of taking a death-bed farewell. One 
can easily imagine the scene at Goes when Dominie Van der 
Meulen preached his last sermon there. He took as his text 
that passage® in which St. Paul describes a similar farewell 
scene, and it is recorded that there was deep emotion and 
much heart breaking weeping.?° 


Journal of Jannes van de Luijster. 

) Van Schelven, “Wat Bracht U Hier?’ De Grondwet, 1908. 

) Journal of Jannes van d eLuijster. 

) Rekenboek of Jannes van de Luijster. 

) Journal of Jannes van de Luijster. 

) Acts 20:25-27. 

0) Translated from a biographical address delivered by Rev. C. van der Meulen at » 
Grand Rapids, Mich., and reprinted in De Grondwet (May, 1912). 


— 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE LONG JOURNEY 


If we allow our minds to travel back to the year 1847, we 
shall remember that although there were steamships which 
made the journey from Liverpool to New York in thirteen 
days, the sailing vessel was still very commonly used for 
both freight and passengers. In this tedious and primitive 
fashion, the Zeelanders made the voyage to New York. 

They had divided into three groups, each of which chose 
a leader. There were one hundred and fifty-seven persons in 
the company in which Ds. Van der Meuien and his family 
found themselves.t They sailed from Rotterdam, with 
Johannes Kaboord as leader.2,. They seem to have suffered 
a great deal from illness and buried twenty-six of their 
number at sea.? 

The remainder, under the leadership of Jannes Van de 
Luijster and Jan Steketee, respectively, were to sail from 
Antwerp. Small boats carried them up the Scheldt to that 
city. The ship, to which Jannes Van de Luijster and his 
company had been assigned, proved to be unseaworthy, and 
they had to wait almost two weeks before the company 
furnished a better vessel. Meanwhile the company allowed 
one and one half francs per person daily for maintenance 
and lodging. This was entirely insufficient, and the tedious 
delay made serious inroads on the supplies and money for 
the journey.‘ 

Finally the ‘“Kroonprins von Hanover” weigher anchor, 
and the first stage of the voyage down the Scheldt was be- 
gun. They have left no record of the emotions, which must 
have filled their hearts, as in the early morning they looked 
for the last time on the fertile fields lying far below the 
massive dykes, and caught a last glimpse of the homestead 
of Van de Luijster and the red-tiled roofs of Borsele. But 
that their hearts were heavy we have no doubt, and espec- 
ially when we read, that before they left Flushing behind, 
two children had died. Four other persons were buried at 
sea in the course of the voyage.® 

Accommodations on sailing vessels were most primitive. 
The passengers had to furnish their own provisions, altho 
the amount was regulated by the government to guard 


(1) Van de Luijster’s Journal. 

(2) Van Anrooy, Peter, ‘‘Zee en Landreis van de Zeeuwen,’’ in De Grondwet, 
September, 1910. 

(8) De Bey en Zwemer, Stemmen uit de Hollandsche Gereformeerde Kerk in 
Amerika. (A pamphet of which the author cannot find time and place of 
publication). 

(4) Van Anrooy, ‘Zee en Landreis.” 

(5) Ibid. 


28 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


against danger of starvation. A stove and two copper ket- 
tles were furnished by the ship company, but the passengers 
had brought with them all sorts of utensils. They appointed 
two cocks, and all ate their meals together like one large 
family. The wooden chests, which contained their belong- 
ings also served as seats. The Van de Luijster family 
brought at least one splint bottomed chair for mother Van 
de Luijster, and this is carefully cherished to this day in the 
home of one of her descendants. On Sundays they sang 
Psalms and listened to preaching by Jan Van de Luijster 
and Cornelis Van Malsem, two young men, who had been 
studying for the ministry.® 


It had been decided that the leader who arrived first 
should decide the locality of the final settlement, and leave 
word for the others to follow. Although the ‘“Kroonprins of 
Hanover” was the last to sail, her voyage was the most pro- 
pitious, and the respensibility for making a choice, there- 
fore, rested upon Jannes Van de Luijster. They arrived at 
New York on Sunday, June 6, 1847, and Ds. Scholte was 
there to meet them to persuade them that Iowa was the 
most desirable place for them to locate.’ 


Scholte and Van Raalte differed widely on the question 
as to what constituted a suitable location for Hollanders. 
It is my purpose to take up in more detail in a later chapter 
the reasons for Van Raalte’s choice of Michigan. It is only 
necessary to explain here that Scholte’s followers were bet- 
ter provided with money. A prairie country really demands 
more capital for building materials, fuel and means of sub- 
sistence while waiting for the first crops. In a forest coun- 
try the lumber serves many uses, and the trees can also be 
converted into ready cash by selling shingles, lathes, staves, 
etc. On the other hand, Schclte argued that Hollanders 
were totally unacquainted with the forested area, and that 
the rich loam of the Iowa lands was the kind of soil with 
which they were most familiar.® 


From New York to Albany, the journey proceeded by 
steam boat. A committee there met Dr. Wyckhoff and con- 
ferred with him in regard to Michigan, but no definite deci- 
sion seems to have been reached. A child died and was 
buried at Albany. From Albany to Buffalo came the tedious 
canal boat part of the journey, and this took eleven days. 
They were crowded and uncomfortable, but since it was 
June, the weather permitted them to spend a great deal of 
time on the flat roof of the cabin. Somewhere along that 


(6) Van eons “Zee en Landreis.’’ 
(7) Van Anrooy, ‘‘Zee en Landreis.”’ 
(8) Nollen, De Oe fiohelding: 47, 48. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 29 


tow path, another member of that company lies buried. 
The boat was halted and a short service held over the 
hastily-dug grave. 


At Buffalo a misunderstanding arose between Van de 
Luijster and Ds. Scholte, and althcugh it is said that the 
tickets to St. Louis had already been purchased, the plans 
were changed, and the Zeelanders turned their faces toward 
Ottawa County, Michigan, where Van Raalte had just estab- 
lished his colony. A steam boat tock them from Buffalo, 
through the lakes, to the mouth of Black Lake, on the Michi- 
gan shore. Since the entrance was choked with sand, they 
were landed with their goods by means of small boats. As 
they gathered on the sandy beach of Macatawa, from 
which the dunes covered with trees stretch along the shore 
for miles, Indians came in their canoes and crowded about 
with friendly cunosity. That night they spent under the 
open sky. 


On Sunday morning, June 27, a flat beat brought our 
weary, heart-sick travelers to the colony at Holland, where 
a few totally inadequate shelters had been erected in antici- 
pation of their arrival. Here they had to wait with as mucn 
patience as they could muster until the site for their loca- 
tion could be picked out.1! 


(9) Van Anrooy, “Zee en Landreis.’”’ 

(10) Black Lake in Ottawa vernacular is ‘“Mekatewagamie,* which means Black 
Water. Macatawa is a reduced form. 

(11) Van Anrooy, ‘‘Zee en Landreis.’”’ 





CHAPTER IX 
THE CHOICE OF A LOCATION BY VAN RAALTE 


There have always been those who have questioned the 
wisdom of Van Raalte’s choice cf a location. His critics 
point to the hardships of the Hollanders in a forested arez, 
to their tctal unpreparedness by previous environment 10 
the conditions which pioneering in Michigan imposed. A 
careful and impartial survey of the actual situation in 1846, 
and of the undisputed present success of the cclony would, 
however, seem to amply justify its founder. 

It does not appear that Van Raalte had Michigan in mind 
when he left The Netherlands in September, 1846. At that 
time the Northwest still faced South, and eastern Wisccon- 
sin, or the prairies of Illinois with the Mississippi as the 
route to the New Orleans market for surplus products seems 
to have been more or less definitely his goal.} 


His attention was first directed to Michigan by a Hoi- 
lander in New York who pointed out the superior transpor- 
tation facilities of that state.2 Reaching Detroit in Nov- 
ember, 1846, the early winter decided him to go no further 
for the present. The members of his little band immed:- 
ately found work in the shipyards at St. Clair, and Van 
Raalte himself made the acquaintance and won the friend- 
ship and assistance of prominent men like Dr. Duffield, 
then pastor of the First Presbyterian church, the lawyer 
Romeyn, Senator Cass, General Robert Stewart and others. 
Detroit was at that time the capital and Van Raalte met 
the members of the state legislature that winter. All of 
these men were favorably impressed with his personality, 
and were anxious to secure the Hollanders, who were con- 
sidered desirable cclonists, for their state. 


In his usual vigorous and efficient manner, Van Raalte 
now set himself to study the situation from every angie, 
and to acquire all the data necessary to a final decision. His 
attenticn was finally directed to Ottawa County to the dis- 
trict lying between the Grand and the Kalamazoo rivers, 
and toward the end of Decembber he made an exploratory 
journey to the Black River region.4 


It is interesting tc recall that the Michigan Central had 
been completed as far as Kalamazoo in February of the pre- 


(1) Dosker, Van Raalte, 70. 

(2) Letter of Ds. Van Raalte written on board the boat Great Western at Buffalo, 
November 27, 1846, to Ds. Brummelkamp in Arnhem and finished at Detroit. 
De Grondwet (Dec. 1911) 

(3) Dosker, Van Raalte, 72, 73. 

(4) Ibid. 


32 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


vious years. From Kalamazoo he proceeded to Allegan, 
which had been begun by Eastern capitalists in the early 
thirties. It is located on a site where numerous Indian trails 
concentrate at an important ford of the Kalamazoo river, 
and before the panic of 1837 it promised to become a flour- 
ishing town.6 At Allegan, Judge Kellogg, whose name is 
so well known and so reverently cherished by the descend- 
ants of the Dutch colonists, became his adviser and patron 
and rendered every conceivable assistance.’ 


On the shores of Black Lake, about three quarters of a 
mile from the present site of the city of Holland, a small 
band of Ottawa Indians were living and a Presbyterian mis- 
sionary, Rev. George N. Smith, was working among them. 
They lived in bark wigwams, and cultivated the ground a 
little and traded with the stations on the Grand River. In 
1848 the government removed them to the shores of Little 
Traverse Bay.® 


Mr. Smith and Indian guides aided Van Raalte to explore 
the snow covered forest and ascertain the nature of the 
country in the Black River valley. He was Mr. Smith’s 
guest and received much valuable information and helpful 
counsel from him as well as hospitality. Late in January, 
Van Raalte returned to Detroit, fully persuaded as to the 
destination of his colony, and he immediately made plans 
to bring his little band of Hollanders to their new home. 


We have already stated the fact that Van Raalte’s atten- 
tion had been directed to Michigan by a Hollander in New 
York, who called his attention to the fact that Michigan was 
being rapidly developed and was accessible to the markets. 
Undoubtedly his stay in Detroit and the influence of the 
triends he made there were factors, but Van Raalte was a 
man of strong will and with a very keen grasp of a situation, 
and he realized immediately the importance of the transpor- 
tation facilities offered by the region he selected. He chose 
a site on the Great Lakes opposite Chicago, which was then 


(5) Detroit Free. Press, February 12, 1846. 

(6) Fuller, George Newman, Economic and Social Beginnings of Michigan, A 
Study of the Settlement of the Lower Peninsula during the Territorial Period, 
1805-1837. (Lansing, 1916, University Series I) $33. 

(7) Dosker, Van Raalte, 74, 75. 

(8) History of Michigan and Ottawa Counties. (H. R. Page & Co., Chicago, 1882) 74. . 

(9) Dosker, Van Raalte, 75. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 33 


becoming a shipping center for grain to the East by way of 
Great Lakes and the Erie Canal. In Black Lake he saw a 
splendid harbor. The Michigan Central railroad was being 
completed to Chicago, and the Pontiac railroad, afterwards 
the Detroit, Grand Haver and Milwaukee, had been begun. 
Van Raalte says of the importance of the Michigan Central 
railroad, “It affords the best opportunity of availing myself 
of the markets in every direction.” Again he writes, “This 
region is dear to me beyond others, because here I am near 
the great inland lakes of America; transportation and ship- 
ping means much to me.’’!° 


Then, too, he felt it an advantage to be in a region between 
settled areas. The Kalamazoo, with its mouth about twelve 
miles to the south, and the Grand about nineteen miles 
north, were very important navigable rivers with flourishing 
settlements along their banks. With Allegan, Grand Rapids, 
Grand Haven and Saugatuck our early settlers were in con- 
stant communication for the purchase of much needed sup- 
plies. On the other hand Van Raalte considered it an advan- 
tage, too, to be out of the path of the flood of Eurcpean emi- 
grants, mostly German, which was just at that time moving 
into Wisconsin. 


Another consideration was the fact that for people of lim- 
ited financial resources, picneering in a forested area is bet- 
ter and cheaper than on the plains. Abundance of fuel, of 
material for building homes, churches, and schools was 
always at hand. Lumbering became an important industry 
from the very first. The making of staves, laths, etc., af- 
forded winter work and an immediate source of procuring 
ready cash. Van der Meulen wrote, “From seven pine trees 
I made more than I paid for the twenty acres cf land on 
which I live. They were made into shingles for roofs.’’!2 


Ottawa County’s soil and topegraphy is formed by sand 
drifted in from Lake Michigan and by soil deposited by the 
river. The dunes extend along the lake shore from its north- 


(10) De Toestand Der Hollandsche Kolonisatie in den staat Michigan, Noord Amer- 
ika in he Begin van het jaar 1849, medegedeeld in drie brieven van de weleerw. 
A. C. Van Raalte, C. Van der Meulen, en S. Bolks, ann C. G. De Moen (Am- 
sterdam, 1849), 8. 

(11) Ibid. 

(12) Translation from letter of Ds. Van der Meulen published in De Grondwet, 
(January, 1912) 


34 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


ern to its southern limits. The effect of Lake Michigan | 
and the prevailing westerly winds is to modify the tempera- 
ture. Grand Haven and Milwaukee have approximately the 
same latitude, but it was found that the temperature in ex- 
treme cold weather was 14 degrees higher at Grand Haven 
than at Milwaukee. Grand Haven has been found to gain 
thirteen days over Milwaukee in Spring and five in autumn. 
This favorable climatic condition is responsible for the fruit 
belt for which western Michigan isi famous. 


Now as to the charge that the region was unhealthful and 
responsible for the sickness and deaths of the first year or 
two, it is far more just to charge the conditions of that first 
year to malnutrition, the lack of proper sanitary precautions 
and the natural exhaustion of vitality due te the hardships 
of the long and difficult journey, than to any unhealthful 
climatic conditions. Undoubtedly there was a great deal of 
suffering from malarial diseases. The settlers aitributed 
this to the fact that when the land was plowed it turned up 
decayed vegetation to the direct rays of the sun and so poi- 
soned the air. The mosquito had not then been discovered 
as the germ carrier of malaria, and was never ccnnected 
with the disease which caused them so much annoyance. 


Just a few words regarding the history of Ottawa County 
previous to 1847. Treaties with the Indians in 1821 and 
1836, respectively, extinguished the Indian titles to the lands 
north and south of the Grand River. Between 1831 and 
1838 various surveys of the government placed the land on 
the market, and the cpening of a land office at Ionia in 1836 
marks an important period in the history of Western Michi- 
gan.!5> Ottawa County was organized in 1837 and the 1840 
census gives the whole county a population of 208.16 


Grand Haven was the oldest and most important settle- 
ment. Rix Robinson, a fur trader, chose this very favorable 
site in 1821 or 1825 as a headquarters for the operation of 
the American 'Fur Company in Western Michigan. At the 
mouth of the Grand River which was navigable for 240 of 
its 270 miles, and with the best natural harbor on the west- 


(14) Fuller, Social and Economic Beginnnings of Michigan, 4. 
(15) Ibid, 63. 
(16) Statistics of Michigan compiled from the Census of 1850, (Lansing, 1851) 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 35 


ern side of the State, Grand Haven was very advantag- 
eously situated. The development of the town is usually 
credited to Rev. William Ferry, who had been a Presbyterian 
missionary among the Indians at Mackinaw. He came to 
Grand Haven in 1834 in the interests of Robert Stuart in 
the employ of the American Fur Company.?"% 


The next settlements after Grand Haven were made at 
Robinson in 1836, and a little farther up the river at East- 
manville. Another very interesting but futile attempt was 
Port Sheldon at the mouth of the Pigeon River about twelve 
miles south of Grand Haven. A group of Eastern capital- 
ists laid cut one of the typical paper cities of that period of 
speculation. The outlet of the river was frequently entirely 
barred by sand. When the crash came in 1837 the whole 
project was abandoned.}8 


In the Black River valley outside of the Indians prev- 
iously mentioned, there were only five white settlers when 
the Hollanders came in 1847.19 Thus the development 
of southern Ottawa County has been wholly their work, and 
the flourishing towns and beautiful, prosperous farms of 
to-day are proof of how well they accomplished their task. 


(17) Fuller, Beginnings of Michigan, 437. 
(18) Ibid. 4388, 489. 
(19) Van Schelven, De Dan Onzer Volksplanting, (De Grondwet, April, 1911) 






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CHAPTER X 


THE SETTLEMENT OF ZEELAND 


The Zeeland congregation had set out in three companies, 
and it had been decided that the leader who arrived first 
should choose the location. The respensibility, thus, rested 
upon Jannes Van de Luijster, who, as we have seen, had 
already decided in favor of the Van Raalte settlement in 
western Michigan. He and his party arrived June 27, 1847.1 


A few weeks later Jan Steketee and his company followed. 
Kaboord, with whom Dominie Van der Meulen and his fam- 
ily had traveled, had met with a most unfavorable voyage 
and various delays, and reached Holland August 1, 1847.2 


Temporary shelters had been erected, and most of the 
women and children remained in Holland, while a site was 
being selected, a road cleared through the forest, and the 
work of erecting homes was begun. That was a difficult 
summer. Small-pox had been brought by the company of 
Jannes Van de Luijster, and an epidemic broke out. The 
food supplies were meager and unsatisfactcry, and malnu- 
trition, crowded and unsanitary conditions did their deadly 
work. 


There were no doctors nor nurses and Dr. Van Raalte 
served as a physician as well as a spiritual comforter by the 
bedsides of the sick. It is small wonder that the hearts of 
our pioneers quailed as they saw themselves in a strange 
land, surrounded by trackless forests, inhabited by wid 
beasts and Indians. Nor is it strange that many of them 
were almost ill with longing and home sickness for the well 
ordered fields and cozy villages of their native land. Thus 
it was a discontented and discouraged group of Zeelanders 
who greeted their pastor, Ds. Van der Meulen. With char- 
acteristic vigor, he plunged into the task of renewing their 
faith and courage. 


Immediately upon his arrival, Van de Luijster had picked 
out a site for his village, six miles east cf the Holland settle- 
ment. A little block house on Black River, about a quarter 
of a mile east of Scholte’s bridge, was to serve as headquar- 
ters. To it, provisions and household gcods were brought 
from Holland by flat-boat, and then taken to the newly- 
formed village over the so-called road, which had been cut 
through the forest. A large rock marks the site of this his- 


(1) Note 1, Chap. VIII. 
(2) ere der Meulen, Jacob oe Doel en Leiders der Eerste Landverhuizers, 
De Grondwet, August 8, 1911 


38 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


toric spot. A bronze tablet now conveys its message to the 
stranger passing by. 

The United States land office for the Grand River district 
was then located at Ionia, or “Ayoni,” as Van de Luijster 
spelled it in his journal. He bought and staked out claims 
for Sections 17, 19, and 400 acres in Section 9, Township 5. 
The patents for this land were granted in 1849. According 
to the Act of Congress of 1820, this land was bought for 
$1.25 an acre.’ 


A few brave spirits struck right out into the wilderness, 
and the first families to settle in the neighborhood of Zee- 
land were Jan Steketee, Jacob De Hond, and Christian Den 
Herder. The building of Van de Luijster’s cwn house was 
begun July 21, 1847. These log houses were built in the 
course of a few weeks from the nearest trees. As a rule, 
they contained but one rocm and, often, only one window. 
The wooden chest, which had contained the family belong- 
ings on the journey from The Netherlands, served as a table. 
At first they cooked on fires of sticks in picnic fashion, but 
soon made use of fire places or little stoves brought from 
Grand Rapids. 


The township of Zeeland was circled from the northeast to 
southwest by a marsh surrounded cn both sides by hills and 
by a belt of pine trees. This swamp was almost impenetra- 
ble and was inhabited by rattle snakes and wild animals. 
Just south of the village lay another marsh called the cedar 
swamp, and for many years this land was considered. werth- 
less. The trees were mostly maple, hemlock, and cedar. 
Wild cats, bears, and deer were quite common in the forests 
and squirrels and raccoons ate their ccrn in the early years. 

We remember that the Zeelanders came as a congregation 
and as a congregation they worshiped for the first time on 
the third Sunday in August cf 1847. The partially com- 
pleted log house of Jan Steketee served as a church. Until 
the log church was erected, they held services every Sunday 
in the house of Jan Wabeke, who lived at the east end of the 
village and whose hcuse was the largest in the community. 

Van de Luijster had set aside eighty acres in Section 19 
for the village to be called Zeeland. He records the reason 
for the name in his Journal: ‘Because it was founded by 
the Zeelanders, whe called upon the name of the Lord to 
prosper His work, and that His name might be called upon 
there forever.” The surveying was done by Grootenhuis and 
Cornelis Verhorst, and inaccuracies occurred because the 
early work was done with ropes instead of chains, and the 


(3) Three original patents. 
(4) Den Herder, Jacob, De Grondwet, April 19, 1913. 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 39 


ropes shrank in damp weather. Each lot was to be an acre. 
Four half acres were set aside in the centre of the village 
for the church, school and market place. The ground on 
which the Reformed church and the monument now stand 
were formally deeded by Van de Luijster to the village, but 
the two half acres now called the city park have never been 
so deeded. The total cost of those eighty acres including 
the original cost at $1.25 per acre, and the expense of sur- 
veying, taxes, etc., was $144.06.5. The plat of the village 
was recorded at Grand Haven on April 17, 1849.¢ 

The village was laid out as a rectangle. There were three 
streets running east and west. What is now called Main 
street was then called North street, and had twenty lots 
facing north. Central avenue was called Cress street and 
was the principal thoroughfare, with an intersecting street 
called Church street, running north and south through the 
public square, which has already been described. South 
street also had twenty lots. The price cf a lot was $6.48, 
and each purchaser was obliged to put up a house upon it 
within three months.’ 

In 1849, under the leadership of Ds. H. G. Klyn, and elders 
J. Kotvis, Jan De Pree and P. Lankester, a large number cf 
families came from the province of Zeeland. Some of these 
people went to Wisconsin, and Ds. Klyn and his followers 
settled at Graafschap. Many, however, came to Zeeland. 

Those early years were marked by many changes. Those, 
who thought they cculd not make a living in the rude little 
village, moved to Kalamazoo or Grand Rapids. In 1851, Jan 
Steketee and his sons left Zeeland to find larger opportuni- 
ties in Grand Rapids. Kabcord, too, settled at first on what 
is the poorest land in Zeeland just northeast of the village, 
but soon moved away. A steady growth was however as- 
sured by immigration, and although pecple from other prov- 
inces moved in, the prevailing dialect spoken was ‘“‘Zeewsch.”’ 
The influence of the Zeeland element was predominating, 
and laid its stamp of individuality upon the community. 


Journal of Jannes Van de Luijster. 

Plat Book, Register’s office, p. 14. Grand Haven, Mich. 

Journal of Van de Luijster. 

De Bey, Zwemer. Stemmen, p. 58. Personal recollections of pioneers form in 
general the basis of this chapter. 


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CHAPTER XI 


EARLY SOCIAL, INDUSTRIAL AND EDUCA- 
TIONAL LIFE IN ZEELAND 


The group of Hollanders in southern Ottawa County was 
known as “the colony.” There were a number of churches, 
each the center of a little community life of its own. Most 
of those communities were entirely agricultural, but Holland 
and Zeeland, the largest and most important villages, devel- 
oped or attempted other industries as well. 


In a certain sense, the experiences of the Hollanders were 
not different from these of other Michigan pioneers, but 
their isolation, the purposes of their immigration, language, 
and customs determined their development as a unique and 
distinct people fer years to come. The Hollanders, perhaps, 
were not as resourceful or ingenious as their Yankee neigh- 
bors, but they possessed patience, perseverance, industry, 
and sterling common sense, qualities no less well calculated 
to win a victory over the obstacles of pioneer life. The an- 
cient motte of the province of Zeeland “‘Luctor et Emergo” 
was expressive of the spirit of those days. 

Felling trees was a difficult and unaccustomed task for 
our colonists, and they received scme instructions from the 
kindly Americans before they could do the work satisfactor- 
ily. In many cases, those good hard wood logs were rolled 
together in great piles and simply burned. The first winter 
fortunately was not severe, and the summer of 1848 was 
very good for potatces. But the next summer was dry, and 
on the whole discouraging. During these first years they 
suffered from an insufficient, and especially, from an unac- 
custcmed diet. Butter and milk products were scarce, and 
the inevitable corn meal was distasteful to them as Europ- 
eans. Vegetables and fruits were scarce, and the only meat 
was pork from a very inferior variety of hogs. Occasicnally 
venison brought a welcome change. 

The statistics of Michigan for 1850 give some idea of the 
crops produced in Holland township of which Zeeland was 
at that time a part. 

Wheat, 65 bushels; rye, 20 bushels; corn, 9,750 busheis; 
oats, 350 bushels; potatces, 1,530 bushels; butter, 1,930 
pounds; maple sugar, 1,610 pounds. In 1850 there were no 
horses in the colony, as they were useless in working new 
land. Holland township had only 168 cows and 70 oxen at 
that time. 

Ds. Van der Meulen and Jan Wabeke owned the first spans 
of oxen in Zeeland. A span of oxen cost about fifty or sixty 
dollars and were scon worn out by the hard work. The 


42 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


first horses were bought in 1855, when clearings wcre more 
frequent, and their use was more practicable. 


In August of 1847, Mr. C. De Putter was one of a commit- 
tee to go to Grand Rapids to buy provisions for the Zeeland 
community. They made the journey on foot through the 
woods and after losing their way once or twice, reached the 
flourishing little city on the Grand River. They bought 
white and rye flour, coffee and butter, and even expended 
some cf their precious money for tobacco. A pipe was no 
doubt a very great luxury in the olden days. They paid 
their bill in gold, a very rare article in Michigan, wliich had 
not yet fully recovered from the severe financiai panic of 
1837. They loaded their previsions on a flat boat, and poled 
them to Grand Haven. There they had to wait eight days 
because of a storm on Lake Michigan. They towed the boat 
along the coast with a horse, and finally, after anotner de- 
lay, reached Black River. They had spent three weeks on 
the journey. 

Later the trip was made in four days, after a rude road 
had been built. It was on the road to Grand Rapids, that 
the colenists became acquainted with the Jenison brothers, 
who had a saw mill on the Grand River. Grandville, too, was 
quite a flourishing village, and considered itself as quite a 
serious rival of Grand Rapids. Trips, on foot, were also 
made to Allegan or Grand Haven, and the courageous set- 
tler carried his supplies home on his back. 


It is difficult to realize that all the farm work in those 
days and for years afterward was done with the crudest im- 
plements, and all by hand labor. In order to get the wheat 
out, the wheat straw was pounded against a board. The 
only reaper was a scythe. 


Huibert Keppel. who came to Zeeland in 18438, was active 
in the business life of the community from the first days. 
He made barrel staves and shipped them to Chicago. The 
Black River was navigabie at that time, and Groningen was 
quite a center of business activities. The Veneklasens began 
a brickyard there. John Rabbes was also a leading charac- 
ter and started a flour mill, but this enterprise came to grief. 
As the woods were cut down, the river shrank, and its possi- 
bilities fer water power and navigation diminished. 


The principal man in the village of Zeeland was rts 
founder, Jannes Van de Luijster, who lived on the hill over- 
looking the cedar swamp. He chose this location because of 
its high and healthful situation, and because of the pres- 
ence of a spring, which, at that time, furnished water to the 
whole community. He was the only man of means in the 
village, and as he was gifted with qualities of leadership, 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 43 


he took an important part, not only among the Zeelanders, 
but also in the general interests of the whole colony. 


The spiritual leader of the community was Ds. Van der 
Meulen, the beloved pastor, who shared the hardships and 
toil, the sorrows and deprivations cf his parishioners. He 
lived at the end of Church street, and the little brook of 
which we have spoken, ran through his land. 


There were two blacksmith shops in Zeeland, a cooper 
shop and several small stores. The first post office was run 
in connection with one of these, which was located or the 
Frank Boonstra residence lot. Letters came by way of the 
stage from Grand Rapids, or were carried from Allegan. 
Whiskey seems to have been sold by the grocery stores with- 
out a license. A number of the early pioneers were rather 
addicted to habits of conviviality, and lost the respect of the 
community. 


The social life was bound up wholly with the religious life. 
The church was the hub arcund which everything centered. 
On Sunday, people made their way to the log church from 
every part of the woods. The Dutch are rare sermon tasters 
and Ds. Van der Meulen knew his people well and spoke to 
their hearts. They went home from these services, encour- 
aged and refreshed, ready to take up once more the hard 
struggles of pioneer life. 

The young people had little recreation. Their busy lives 
did not afford much leisure for amusements, even if the Pur- 
itanical views of their elders had not sternly frowned upon 
even innecent pleasures. The catechism class on Sunday 
evenings afforded an oppcertunity to the older boys and girls 
of meeting. Barn raisings were occasions for some fes- 
tivity. 

Until church quarrels brought bitterness and dissen- 
sion, a very harmonious and beautiful spirit prevailed 
among the early settlers. They were all poor, and all will- 
ingly helped to bear each other’s burdens. Those who had a 
little means shared with those less fortunate. 


Medical facilities were of the simplest. Mrs. G. Baert 
practised midwifery and also performed the operation of 
cupping. Her son afterwards became a well-beloved physi- 
cian in the community. Dr. W. Van Den Berg was also a 
well known figure in the community, and was considered an 
oracle for miles around. This was probably due more to his 
knowledge of human nature, than to his preparation in his 
subject. 


Zeeland was not formally recognized as a schcol district 
till December 26, 1850. The first school meeting was held in 
the Reformed church building January 7, 1851. At that 


44 EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 


meeting, one dollar was voted for the education of each child 
between the ages of four and eighteen. Long before that 
time, however, schocl was taught in the log church. Later 
a school building was erected on the half acre on which the 
monument to the old settlers new stands. 


The first teacher in Zeeland was a young man, Elias 
Young, who came from Grand Haven and who was not famil- 
iar with the Dutch language. He was scon succeeded by 
“Meester”? Robbertus M. De Bruyn, who arrived in the col- 
ony in 1848. His first teaching was in Dutch. A little later 
a young man called Kenworthy, taught English, while Mr. 
De Bruyn taught in Dutch and learned English from his 
assistant. Meester De Bruyn was the highly honored and 
respected man of learning in the community for about four- 
teen years. He was a man of splendid character and was 
highly talented. His wife was Susanna Leenhouts, whom he 
breught from Wisconsin. 


NOTE. Personal reminiscences of the late Mr. Govert 
Keppel, Mrs. Jan Huizinga, Mr. C. Van Loo and others form 
the basis for this chapter. 


II. 
Il. 
RY; 


VI. 
VIL. 
VIII. 
IX. 


At, 


EARLY HISTORY OF ZEELAND 45 


TABLE OF CONTENTS 


French Influences from 1789-1813. 
Reorganization of The Church by William II. 
The Reveil and the Secession of 1834. 
Persecution. 


The Free Church Movement in the Province of Zee- 
land. 


The Colonization Movement. 

Colonization in the Province of Zeeland. 

The Journey. 

The Choice of a Location by Van Raalte. 

The Settlement of the Village of Zeeland, Michigan. 
Social and Industrial Conditions in the Early Days. 


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